From Skins to Hollywood: What The Skins Cast Did Next

Nicholas Hoult

In Skins: Tony Stonem was the first role for Hoult that really allowed him to shed the stigma of being ‘that kid from About A Boy ’. Subverting his good looks and cutesie reputation, Tony had a vicious mean streak and an open attitude towards his sexuality.

One of the key characters of the first two series of Skins .

What Happened Next: Hoult is one of the most successful actors to have bounced off the Skins career launchpad. After breaking out with a spot-on American accent opposite Colin Firth in A Single Man , he took a small role in Clash Of The Titans before landing a fantasy lead of his own in Jack The Giant Slayer .

On top of that, he also plays a key role in the rejuvenated X-Men franchise, went pallid and shuffly for Warm Bodies and will appear alongside Tom Hardy in Mad Max reboot Fury Road .

Kaya Scodelario

In Skins: The series’ most capped cast member, Scodelario played central character Effy Stonem across several seasons of Skins , and she’s returning for series 7’s TV movie ‘Fire’. The younger sister of Nicholas Hoult’s Tony, Effy has a penchant for trouble, coming between former bezzie mates Cook (Jack McConnell) and Freddie (Luke Pasqualino).

What Happened Next: Scodelario’s another Skins graduate with a very healthy movie CV. She earned sci-fi cred in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it role in Duncan Jones’ Moon , and joined Hoult in a supporting role in Clash Of The Titans . After that she was Cathy in Andrea Arnold’s roughly-hewn Wuthering Heights adap, and she’ll next be seen in indie thriller Emanuel And The Truth About Fishes .

And if that lot weren’t enough, she’s gearing up for franchise material young adult novel adaptation The Maze Runner .

Dev Patel

In Skins: Anwar Kharral was another key character across the show’s first two series. Overwhelmed at times by his Muslim faith, Anwar rarely lived up to his family’s religious rules. At the end of series 2, he was seen heading off to London after flunking his A-levels.

What Happened Next: Patel had a huge post- Skins hit with Oscar-snaffler Slumdog Millionaire , before getting his blockbuster on with M. Night Shyamalan’s epic misfire, The Last Airbender .

He followed that up as one of the least wrinkly cast members in The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel , before scoring a regular role on Aaron Sorkin’s The Newsroom . He also had a role in porn drama, About Cherry , which is yet to have a UK release.

Jack OConnell

In Skins: Bad boy James Cook rocked up in the third series of Skins , when the show had its first cast shake-up with a new generation. With Scodelario’s Effy coming to the fore, Cook was one of her key love interests. As his character arc went on, he got into some of show’s grittiest scrapes.

In his series 7 TV movie 'Rise', Cook’ll be found deep in the Manchester drug scene.

What Happened Next: O’Connell already had a promising start to his big-screen career before he joined Skins , bringing his particular brand of edgy arrogance to This Is England , Eden Lake and Harry Brown .

Recently, he’s been seen in Brit action thriller Tower Block and Michael Morpurgo adaptation Private Peaceful , and he held his own opposite Tim Roth in The Liability . Next up, he’ll appear in his biggest movie to date in stylised comic-book sequel 300: Rise Of An Empire .

Luke Pasqualino

In Skins: Freddy McClair was the third side of the love triangle that also included Effy and Cook. The most chilled in his bunch of friends, he was one of the second wave of the show’s most popular characters, and was killed off after his relationship with Effy led him down a dark road.

What Happened Next: After scoring another high-profile TV gig as Paolo in The Borgias , Pasqualino appeared in Battlestar Galactica TV movie Blood And Chrome , and Brit comedy-horror Love Bite .

Next up, he’s got a role in Snowpiercer , the intriguing English-language debut of The Host director Bong Joon-ho. He’s part of one hell of an eclectic cast, including Chris Evans, Tilda Swinton, John Hurt, Octavia Spencer and Ed Harris.

Hannah Murray

In Skins: Cassie Ainsworth was a regular fixture in the first two series of Skins , and was notable for being one of the show’s most troubled characters, recovering from a suicide attempt before the first episode had even kicked off.

Her troubled relationship with Sid accounted for much of her drama, and she had relocated to New York before the close of series 2.

What Happened Next: Murray’s gone on to have a varied post- Skins career, with the likes of Hideo Nakata’s Chatroom , sci-fi drama Clone (with Eva Green and Matt Smith), and teensy background spot in Tim Burton’s Dark Shadows littering her CV.

It’s possible that what you’re most likely to have seen her in is another high-profile TV gig, as Gilly in Game Of Thrones . And on top of that, Murray will return for Cassie-centric TV movie 'Pure' for Skins ’ seventh series.

Dakota Blue Richards

In Skins: One of the key players in Skins' third generation (series 5 and 6), Richards played Franky Fitzgerald, something of an outsider who was frequently bullied. Keeping herself to herself, Franky played her relationships - and her sexuality - close to her chest.

What Happened Next: Richards had movie blockbuster experience from a young age when she starred with Daniel Craig and Nicole Kidman in The Golden Compass in 2007, and she had another crack at family-friendly fantasy in The Secret Of Moonacre , although neither film found Harry Potter levels of success.

After Skins , Richards bagged a role in spooky TV drama series Lightfields , and will turn her hand to indie fare in 2013’s The Fold .

Daniel Kaluuya

In Skins: Not one of the show’s key players, but a notable sideline character in the first generation of Skins , Kaluuya played Posh Kenneth in 11 episodes. Often spotted larking around with the boys, he was responsible for some of the programme’s funniest lines.

What Happened Next: Kaluuya has gone on to add several notable credits to his CV post- Skins . As well as scoring work on some big TV shows (including Black Mirror , a guest spot on Doctor Who , and a recurring role on Psychoville ), he also joined Hannah Murray in Chatroom .

Plus, he played Agent Tucker in Johnny English Reborn , bagged a role in slick Brit-thriller Welcome To The Punch , and will next be seen as the ominously named Black Death in Kick-Ass 2 .

Joe Dempsie

In Skins: Dempsie played Chris Miles, the wild one of the first generation, with a lifestyle philosophy that involved living it large, consequences be damned. Burning brightly but briefly, Chris was another of the shows tragedies, as he died of a hereditary condition before the series 2 was out.

What Happened Next: Dempsie’s another Skins star to have notched up a diverse body of work, including guest roles in Doctor Who , Merlin and This Is England ’86 . Movie-wise, he appeared with Michael Sheen in football biography The Damned United and Jason Statham actioner Blitz .

Like Murray, it’s also possible that you’ll best recognise Dempsie in another huge-profile TV show: he plays Gendry in HBO’s Game Of Thrones .

Sebastian De Souza

In Skins: Matty Levan was something of a background player in the third generation (series 5 and 6) of Skins . A drifter, he rocked up mysteriously, and was only later revealed to be Nick Levan’s (Sean Teale) older brother. Suffering the fallout of having grown up with an overbearing and abusive father, Matty’s biggest character connection was with Dakota Blue Richards’ Franky.

What Happened Next: Like Luke Pasqualino, De Souza went on to land a recurring role in glossy TV serial The Borgias . When it comes to films, he’ll be making his debut in Plastic , a comedy-drama-thriller from director Julian Gilbey ( A Lonely Place To Die , Rise Of The Footsoldier ).

Ollie Barbieri

In Skins: Barbieri played JJ Jones in series 3 and 4, making up ‘The Three Musketeers’ with Freddie and Cook. The character had Asperger’s syndrome, and achieved more academically then he did socially, although he grew to develop some solid relationships over the course of the two years.

What Happened Next: Barbieri hasn’t yet had the big-screen success as some of his fellow Skins graduates, but he did nab a part in Bafta-winner Adam Deacon’s Anuvahood , and has filmed a role in comedy short I’m Not Gavin .

Will Merrick

In Skins: Merrick played the memorably named Aloysius Creevey across series 5 and 6. A country bumpkin, Alo is a bit of an outsider, and like many of his Skins contemporaries has a fractious relationship with his parents, at one point lashing out and wrecking their farm. Over the course of the sixth season, he developed a relationship with Mini (Freya Mavor) that eventually leads to the birth of their baby ar the culmination of series 6.

What Happened Next: Having only completed work on series six of Skins in 2012, Merrick’s filmography is relatively sparse. That hasn’t stopped him landing roles in Doctor Who (something of a Skins trend) and Richard Curtis' upcoming time-travel romcom About Time .